


Like a Cauldron on Fire

by Fangirl7250



Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Dubious Consent, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Mpreg, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-23
Updated: 2020-08-07
Packaged: 2021-02-27 04:14:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,727
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22370863
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fangirl7250/pseuds/Fangirl7250
Summary: While it is true that Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore is far more wise and magically gifted than a large majority of wizards, it doesn’t make him immune to his biology (no matter how much he wishes it did).
Relationships: Albus Dumbledore/Gellert Grindelwald, Armando Dippet & Albus Dumbledore, Newt Scamander & Theseus Scamander, Theseus Scamander & Mrs. Scamander
Comments: 4
Kudos: 167





	1. Prelude: Biology

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [For His Own Good](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18081017) by [Geekygirl24](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Geekygirl24/pseuds/Geekygirl24). 



> This is my first fanfic ever so i would appreciate feedback if you wish to give it. If you see any major (or just annoying) errors please let me know. I hope you enjoy and if you don't... well... at least it's not that long and you didn't waste to much of your time (;

While it is true that Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore is far more wise and magically gifted than a large majority of wizards, it doesn’t make him immune to his biology (no matter how much he wishes it did). This is the main reason why he had even seen Gellert Grindelwald since the day his sister died, they were almost too compatible with their beauty, their brilliance, and their youth. Gellert had fascinated Albus from the moment they first saw each other in Bathilda Bagshot’s kitchen with his silvery blonde hair, high, sharp cheekbones, and heterochromia. This fascination was not one-sided for Gellert was just as intrigued by Albus as he was by him for neither of them had ever met someone else who they would honestly consider their equal.  
Their fasciation had quickly turned to a burning passion bordering on obsession. This would ultimately lead to Albus Dumbledore making one of his most regrettable decisions, second only to entering a mating bond with Gellert Grindelwald, entering a blood pact with him. The blood pact ensuring that they should never fight one another and the mating bond (a complete accident on the part of both parties) ensuring that they wouldn’t want to.

The blood pact came first, during that fateful summer of 1899 when the two young lovers were concocting their plans for the greater good. The mating bond came later when Gellert visited Albus for the first time in five years during the year of 1904 while Albus was in Hogsmeade for his heat. Gellert could not resist the temptation and Albus, his mind clouded with hormones, did not have the presence of mind, nor the will, to stop him. Their mating was short and rough, Albus would have thought it to be a dream if he did not have hand-shaped bruises pressed into his hips and a fresh mating bite on his neck ensuring that, whether he liked it or not, he would have to see Gellert again in the future when his body demanded he do so. 

After a short time, Albus managed to push the incident to the back of his mind until a couple months later when he realized that Gellert had left him with more than just a mating bond. For the first time since Ariana’s death Albus experienced true terror, he knew how to do the most complicated magic known to wizardkind but there was no spell he could use to get rid of the baby that had already taken root inside of him. He knew he could not tell Gellert about the child; he even made a mental list of the reasons why to avoid ever developing the temptation to do so: Gellert Grindelwald was not the nurturing type (he hated people who depended on him who he did not have an immediate use for), Gellert thought of Albus as more of an achievement than a relationship (instead of tracing “I love yous” onto his Albus’ back like most young lovers he frequently scratched the word mine), and the second Gellert found out the child existed he would take it and use it to make Albus rejoin the fight for the greater good (the child was a new weak spot Albus would not leave exposed). 

The only people who knew of the child growing inside of Albus Dumbledore were Armando Dippet (the only other male omega on staff) and the resident Hogwarts healer, and even then Dippet was the only one who knew the identity of the child’s sire. Albus’ pregnancy was relatively uneventful and on February 24, 1905, Albus Dumbledore went into labor in the early hours of the morning before the house-elves even began to work for the day. Albus stayed in his private chamber and cycled between pacing and sitting for several hours before his water broke and he delivered his child on the floor by himself (if the child looked overmuch like Gellert it would not be good to have anyone but Dippet see them). The baby boy came into the world with a loud cry and Albus was relieved when Dippet came rushing into his chambers to inquire about why he had missed lunch for he was not sure that he could stand back up by himself. 

When Albus held his boy for the first time he knows that he loved him and that he would do anything to protect him even if that meant he would never see him again. Albus knew that if he did not send the baby away Gellert would find out about him and Albus knew that that could never be allowed to happen. Albus wound up giving the child to one of Dippet’s former students, a female omega by the name of Scamander. He asked her to never tell the boy his name but to tell him that he would always love him, even if he was not with him. Mrs. Scamander agreed to Albus’ terms, giving him one more day to spend with his boy before he would lose him forever. 

Albus spent hours memorizing the boys' face, his auburn hair, and his eyes which already closely resembled Geller’s (truthfully they were the only part of the boy that did). The very next day she returned to take the child home with her but refused to leave with him until Albus gave him a name which he had chosen not to do to avoid becoming even more attached to the boy. He ultimately decided on the name Newton after the muggle scientist Isac Newton whose work he had become fond of. As Albus watched Mrs. Scamander walk away with his baby he had to keep repeating his list in his head lest he be tempted to take the boy back because he knew he had made the right choice, but that didn’t lessen the pain in his heart or the wretched screams of his inner omega, wanting its baby back.


	2. Chapter 1: Melancholy and Curiosity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Albus sees his son again and Theseus overhears an interesting conversation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know if there are any major or really annoying mistakes in the chapter and I hope you enjoy (:

April 1905 

Albus knew that his abrupt melancholy was somewhat suspicious, but it had been almost two months since he had given Newton away and it seemed that the only thing that would improve his mood was time. He continued to teach and research as usual (it would attract too much attention if he didn’t), however, it was apparent to those around him, even the students, that his motivation had left him.

July 1906

The occupants of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry were all relieved when Albus Dumbledore seemed to come back to himself, but Armando Dippet knew better. He knew that Albus was only burying his sorrow and not addressing the root of the problem: his longing to see Newton and, to a lesser extent, his desire for his mate. Dippet knows that no matter how vehemently Albus denied it, his mating bond made it necessary that he mates with Gellert Grindelwald again someday and that the longer he delayed the reunion, the more extreme his heats and more unbalanced his emotions would be. Albus’ unconscious yearning for his mate was not something Dippet could assist him with (that situation Albus would have to work out on his own), he could, however, be of help to Albus in regards to his longing to be close to his child. 

\--------------------

When Armando Dippet’s owl landed on the ledge of the window in Albus’ chambers he was slightly confused: Why would Dippet send him an owl when they were in the same castle? The letter the owl was tasked with delivering to him seemed to contain nothing that could not wait to be discussed during dinner, that is, until he noticed faint traces of magic and that the parchment the letter was written on was the type that was usually reserved for photographs. With a flick of the wand and a murmured “Aparecium” the true contents of the parchment were revealed. At first, Albus didn’t understand why Dippet would send him a photograph of a small boy toddling towards a camera, but then the boy in the picture looked directly into the camera and Albus suddenly understood why he was receiving this photograph for the difference in pigmentation between the boy’s two eyes was discernible even without color. Albus didn’t know how long he stood next to the window staring at the picture of Newton, watching it loop dozens of times. Once he regained some of his composure, Albus realized that the photo had to have been taken relatively recently since Newton was walking when it was taken. He flipped the photograph over and, on the back, written in dark green ink in the corner of the parchment was a date: 24/02/1906. 

Albus would get a new photograph of Newton on his birthday from Dippet every year until Newton started his first year of Hogwarts in 1916 and Albus kept every single one of them, just this once, disregarding the danger of someone finding them and making dangerous connections simply because the photographs eased his sorrows whenever he looked at them. 

August 1910 

The first time Albus saw Newton in person since his birth was not the first day of his first year at Hogwarts, it was during the summer while Albus was in Diagon Alley to purchase ink and a new quill. The school year was to start next month, therefore, the streets and the shops were packed with people which is why it took him so long to spot her. Mrs. Scamander was walking out of Gringotts with a young boy who looked to be around the age of a first-year student, which meant that they were probably school shopping. It took Albus a few seconds to spot the third person who was walking with them: a little boy, his Newton, tucked under his mother's robe (probably spooked by the large crowd and the loud noises).

Mrs. Scamander must have felt Albus’ eyes on her for she turned her head sharply to look him directly in the eyes and in a matter of seconds her face smoothed into a mask of stone with no detectable emotion in her blue eyes. As she kept her eyes on him, she bent down to talk to the older boy (Albus couldn’t recall if he was ever told his name) whom she gave Newton to. The boy proceeds to drag Newton in the direction of Florean Fortescue's while his mother called after him to remind him to be careful and watch Newton. After the boys disappeared inside the shop Mrs. Scamander began to head in his direction, presumably to speak with him, so he turned and made his way into an empty alcove in between two shops in an effort to not be seen with her.

As soon as she arrived in the alcove Mrs. Scamander looked him dead in the eyes and said “it’s remarkable how much he looks like you … except for the nose and eyes.” When she mentioned Newton’s eyes her face scrunched up and her tone took on an edge of concern which prompted him to reassure her that Newton’s sire also had odd eyes and it should not pose him any risk. While this reassurance took the concern out of her voice, Mrs. Scamander’s face remained slightly pinched. She then proceeded to drop her eyes to the floor and mutter that he was welcome to visit ‘Newt’ anytime he wished which made him take a few steps forward and wait for her to look him in the eyes so that he could reiterate to her how vital it is that nobody finds out that he is Newton’s mother, making sure to emphasize how dangerous it would be for Newton should anybody else make the connection. That was when the boy, presumably Mrs. Scamander’s son, peeked around the corner to hesitantly ask his mother for money because “Newt dropped his ice cream.” Her son’s appearance seemed to bring Mrs. Scamander back to reality and she turned to her son and told him that she was done talking and would buy Newt his ice cream herself. She then turned back to him and thanked him for his time before walking out of the alcove, her son at her heels.

September 1, 1910 

When Theseus Scamander saw the small rickety boats that would be used to fairy the first years to the castle his nerves finally got the best of him and his hands began to shake which made getting into the boat quite difficult, but he somehow managed it just in time for the boats to begin making their way across the seemingly bottomless lake that separated Hogwarts from its surroundings. As the boats made their way under the bridge Theseus caught his first glimpse of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and he could do nothing but stare at the imposing castle that would be his school for the next seven years. He was so entranced by the sight of the castle that he didn’t even notice when they arrived at their final destination causing him to have to scramble to catch up with the other first-years who were already making their way to the entrance of the school.

When the doors of the castle opened a familiar-looking man stepped out onto the steps, it was the same man he had caught talking to his mother in Diagon Alley. The groundskeeper addressed the man as professor Dumbledore and told them to follow him to the great hall where they would be sorted into their houses. As the group made their way through the school to the great hall he seemed to be the only one more interested in watching and listening to the professor than gaping at the ghosts, paintings, and moving staircases. It wasn’t that those things weren't interesting, he was just far more inclined to figure out why his mother was talking to one of his professors, whom he didn’t think she was particularly well acquainted with, about his little brother who was only five, far to young for Hogwarts. The reason he found it so odd was that professor Dumbledore and his mother had seemed to want the conversation to remain as discreet as possible, that, and the parts of the conversation he had managed to overhear seemed to be oddly personal for two people who didn’t seem to know each other.

Theseus had gone to Diagon Alley with his mother and Newt in August to get his school materials for his first year at Hogwarts and they had just walked out of Gringotts when his mother abruptly stopped and stared into the crowd of people. She then proceeded to lean down and tell him to take Newt to get ice cream while she dealt with some business. Theseus had wanted to question her further but she shoved Newt at him and pushed them in the direction of Florean Fortescue's before he had the chance to do so. When Newt dropped his ice cream on the floor of the shop and started crying he had panicked and told him to wait in the shop while he went to find their mother for money so that he could buy him another one before Newt could really start to get upset.

After a few minutes of searching, he found his mother tucked into an alcove created by two shops talking to a man he had never seen before. He knew that he should have immediately gone up to his mother and told her that he needed more money so that he could get back to Newt as fast as possible, but his curiosity got the better of him when he heard his mother say “you can come to visit Newt anytime you want, you know, don’t feel like you need to stay away from him.” After she said that the man she was talking to stepped forward with a very serious face and hard, sad blue eyes and said something to her that was too soft for him to make out. At that point, Theseus became suspicious; Why was his mother telling a stranger that he could come to visit Newt? Newt didn’t really like people and tended to stay by their mother and listen to her stories about the hippogriffs she bred instead of making friends. Theseus then realized the two adults were done talking at a volume he could hear without moving closer where he would be seen and so he decided to do the safe thing and get his mother’s attention so he could get back to Newt. As it turned out she had finished talking to the man and, after she thanked the man for his time, she walked out of the alcove and in the direction of the ice cream parlor Theseus following her and staring at the man until he lost sight of him. 

Theseus was so focused on professor Dumbledore that he barely registered arriving at the doors to the great hall. He returned to the moment when the great doors opened up and the previously loud children sitting at the tables grew silent in anticipation of the sorting. When the old hat sitting on a stool at the front of the hall explained that the only thing they had to do to get sorted was put it on their heads he was extremely relieved, he could probably do that without embarrassing himself too much. He watched a few dozen students be sorted before it was his turn. Professor Dumbledore called out his name and he made his way to the stool where the hat was unceremoniously plopped onto his head. He startled when a voice, presumably the hat’s, began to speak inside his head seemingly having a debate with itself over which house it should place him in. The hat seemed to be leaning towards Gryffindor and since Theseus didn’t have much of a preference for any of the houses he told the hat to just hurry up and announce it so he could eat dinner. The hat, as it turned out, took suggestions and loudly shouted “Gryffindor” which was immediately followed by enthusiastic cheering and professor Dumbledore removing the hat from his head and sending him in the direction of the table full of students wearing red and gold robes.

Once he sat down, the sorting finished relatively quickly and dinner appeared on the tables much to the appreciation of the very hungry students. Theseus couldn’t help but periodically glance over at professor Dumbledore who was sitting at the staff table and didn’t seem to notice how much Theseus was staring at him. When most of the students seemed to be done eating the prefects got up and began to escort them out of the great hall and to their common rooms. On the way out Theseus turned around to get one more look at professor Dumbledore who, this time, happened to catch Theseus’ eye and stared right back at him. As the two stared at each other Theseus suddenly realized why professor Dumbledore fascinated him so much: despite never seeing him before that trip to Diagon Alley, there was something eerily familiar about the professor and Theseus, with his curiosity, had to know why.


	3. Chapter 2: Of Love, Shame, and Mates

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Theseus starts school and Albus makes a decision.

Theseus couldn’t wait for his first transfiguration lesson, not because he found the subject particularly interesting (the textbook certainly wasn’t), but because it was the subject that was taught by Professor Dumbledore. He had only managed to catch glimpses of the man in passing or at meals and couldn’t wait to see him up close and personal.

His first transfiguration lesson was on the fourth day of the term and, from what he’d managed to gather during the lesson, the Professor was a kind, charming man who made you feel like you’d known him for years when, in reality, you’d just met him and knew nothing about him that was of any consequence. There was also the fact that the man not only felt but also looked familiar. It took Theseus a few months to figure out why exactly that was: first, the professor was an omega like his mother which the students found out when he had his heat right before Christmas and, therefore, had to cancel their lessons until they came back the following term and second the Professor reminded him of Newt with his auburn hair, charming smile, and sharp cheekbones. Theseus found the latter to be much more important given the fact that he had heard his mother talking to Professor Dumbledore about Newt and not about being an omega. Professor Dumbledore didn’t just look like Newt, Theseus found out when he had to go to the Professor’s tutoring for help with a particularly difficult bit of magic before his end of year exams, he also acted like him: they both had the same excitement over the subjects they were passionate about and a love of sour sweets. 

Theseus couldn't help but wonder if Professor Dumbledore was somehow connected to where Newt came from. He knew his brother was adopted given the fact that his mother hadn’t been pregnant; she had simply disappeared for a few days and then came back with Newt in her arms, telling him that Newt was his new little brother and that they would be caring for him from now on. He asked his mother about it when he came home for the summer and he would never forget how her face had gone blank and her eyes hard when she told him that if he loved Newt he would never bring up where he came from, even if it was just a theory, ever again and so he didn’t but that didn’t mean that he would stop thinking about it. 

It would take a couple more years for Theseus to figure out the extent of Albus Dumbledore’s involvement with his brother’s origins. The realization would only come with age and the knowledge that came with it: that not all relationships were like the one his parents had, the extent that love for another person could influence someone to do things they wouldn’t do otherwise, and, most importantly, that even the brightest and wisest people in the world are not infallible. 

\--------------------

May 1904

When Albus walked into the great hall the morning after he got back from having his heat in Hogsmeade Armando Dippet was immediately suspicious; Albus was walking unnaturally slow and kept bringing his hand up to touch the same spot at the junction between his neck and shoulder. He was old and experienced enough to recognize the signs of an omega who had just finished mating with an alpha and Albus was exhibiting all of them. The only problem with that was that Dippet knew Albus didn’t have a mate, or at least he didn’t use to for the only reason that Albus would be so fixated on that one spot was if he had just recently received a bonding bite. This development wasn’t overly concerning to Dippet at first because Albus was 23 and while that was a bit young to be bonded he wasn’t by any means a child. 

Dippet did, however, begin to worry slightly when Albus kept the bond mark hidden since Very few omegas who were mated did because a bond mark was usually a way to fend off unwanted attention from other alphas along with the fact that it was viewed as a slight towards one’s mate to hide their claim. Even though Dippet found this concerning he still didn’t say anything, after all, Albus was a very private person and could handle himself if something was going on that needed to be handled, that is, until Albus didn’t begin to exhibit signs of preheat when his heat was supposed to be starting in a week.

September 1904

Dippet approached Albus after dinner one evening and asked him for a word in his office to ensure that the discussion about a sensitive situation would not be overheard by any overly curious ears. When they arrived at his office Dippet raised the silencing charms and locked the door behind him before sitting behind his desk and turning his head to look at Albus who was now standing in front of the window staring at the sky. He cleared his throat causing Albus to startle and turn to look at him.“Did you know that your heat is supposed to be in a few days?” 

“I’m perfectly aware of when my heat is going to start” Albus’ voice carried a slightly confused lilt “You know that; you are the one who taught me to track them.” 

“but it’s not going to start, is it, because your'e already pregnant, therefore making a heat entirely impossible.”

Albus just stared at him for a few minutes without saying anything before he slowly nodded his head in confirmation. Dippet couldn’t stop the confused frown from appearing on his face; Why did Albus look so unhappy with his pregnancy when he so clearly loved children. The answer was so obvious Dippet could have kicked himself for missing it “your mate is not happy about this development I take it.” 

Albus’ face went hard and he turned his head to look back out the window as he quietly whispered: “he doesn’t know, he cannot know.”

Dippet knew by the way Albus had tensed up and dropped his hand to his lower abdomen that he had finally gotten to the root of the problem. “And who would that happen to be?” 

Dippet knew that if he was anyone else Albus would have just told him that his mate’s identity was of no consequence and redirected the conversation to other matters, but he was not anybody else, he was the one who had helped Albus through his first heat when he presented at the early age of twelve and his mother could not be there to help him, the one Albus had come to for advice about fending off overeager alphas, and the one who had taught him what it was to be an omega; he was Albus’ only confidant in these matters. Therefore, when Albus left his spot by the window and approached him he knew he was going to get an answer to his question and not a redirection. Albus sat in the chair in front of his desk and bent forward to stare at the floor before whispering one word: Gellert.

Dippet could only stare at Albus who eventually picked his head up and smiled sadly before saying that he should not worry because Albus had no plans to see him ever again, but Dippet knew better, he knew that Albus would have to see Gellert Grindelwald again for better or worse. When he voiced this to Albus he seemed confused and so Dippet decided to elaborate; He told Albus that once the baby was born and he started having heats again they would get progressively more intense along with his preheats until he mated with Grindelwald again. Albus looked devastated and he slowly closed his eyes before whispering, so quietly that Dippet was sure he was not supposed to hear, the words “Ariana, Aberforth please forgive me.” 

October 1911

When Albus woke up on the morning of October 7, 1911, feeling dizzy and nauseous he knew that his preheat had officially begun. When he proceeded to spend the next ten minutes vomiting in a conjured basin, he knew that this heat would be truly unbearable. He remembers the warning Armando Dippet gave him several years ago about how much worse his heats would be because he has a mate he refuses to mate with, and he had not been wrong. His heats had steadily gone from unnaturally intense to almost unbearable over the years since he bonded with Gellert and he was at his wit's end. 

As soon as he entered the dining hall and smelled the food that was laid out he felt his stomach turn and immediately walked out again to go find a private place to expel whatever was left in his stomach after earlier this morning. He was so focused on not vomiting in the hallway that the hand he recognized as Armando Dippet grabbing his shoulder to steer him in the direction his office momentarily startled him. As soon as they got to Dippet’s office he dropped into a chair and conjured another basin just in case the urge to vomit suddenly came back. 

“it’s time, if you put this off any longer it will begin to permanently damage you.” 

Albus could only give a resigned sigh before he reminded Dippet that there were also several risks associated with mating with Gellert again.

Dippet kept eye contact with Albus and reminded him that “no matter what you choose there will be consequences. You just have to choose the path that contains the consequences you find you're able to live with” 

\--------------------

Following several more days of preheat filled with overpowering cramps, hot flashes, and vomiting Albus stood in the owlery the night before he was set to leave for Hogsmead attaching a small box to an owl’s leg which contained a small rock with a phoenix carved into it and a letter containing only one sentence: I need you.

\--------------------

Albus was standing in front of the window of his room in Hogsmeade watching raindrops slide down the glass when Gellert appeared in the room behind him dropping the portkey he had sent him onto the desk where he could find it later. Albus didn’t want to turn around, didn’t want to face Gellert and see all of his most regrettable decisions embodied in the one person left in the world who he truly loved, but he knew he had to. 

The first thing he noticed when he turned around was that Gellert had changed since he’d seen him last: he was taller and broader with paler, shorter hair and, he found out when Gellert spoke, a deeper, richer voice.

“You look sick Albus. You should have called me sooner” Gellert purred after they had stood in silence for a few minutes just looking at each other.

Albus merely whimpered, his mind too foggy with heat to formulate an intelligent response to Gellert’s statement. Gellert seemed to take that as some sort of cue and he slowly walked towards Albus and stopped directly in front of him, his breath fanning across Albus’ face. 

“No matter, I’m here now,” Gellert whispered as he slowly pulled out his wand and vanished their clothing before lifting Albus, walking him over to the bed, and placing him face down in the middle of it. Albus felt the bed dip under Gellert’s weight as he climbed on behind and grabbing his hips to angle them the way he wanted them. As Gellert pushed inside him Albus closed his eyes and turned his head to bury his face in the mattress to hide his tears of relief and shame. 

When Albus awoke the next morning he was completely alone and while he was still in heat it was more reminiscent of the ones he had when he was younger and unbonded. He sat up to look around the room noticing that the portkey was gone, and with it, Gellert. Albus could not contain the overwhelming relief that came with the knowledge that he would not have to face Gellert in a more coherent state nor could he contain his disappointment at Gellert’s absence.

He spent the rest of his heat in a daze and, when it was over, he slowly limped his way back to Hogwarts hoping that his mortification was not visible on his face for the world to see.


	4. The End of the Beginning and The Beginning of the End.

Albus couldn’t remember a time in his life when he felt more watched in an empty space; there was no one else in the corridor with him of that he was certain but he just couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was there, their presence was almost tangible. He was positive it was just his paranoid mind playing tricks on him he had, after all, just come back from seeing the one person in this world that he didn’t want anyone to connect him to. This was more important now than ever before; it wasn’t just his own life he was gambling with anymore, but the lives of Newton and the rest of the Scamanders as well. 

When he stepped into his chambers Albus had a feeling that his perception of being in another’s presence wasn’t paranoia anymore and sure enough when he turned the corner of the entryway Armando Dippet was sitting in Albus’ favorite chair responding to what appeared to be a letter from the Ministry of Magic. Dippet, however, remained unaware of Albus’ presence in the room until Albus cleared his throat to get his attention. 

“I did not think you would be up this late” Albus stated. Actually, it was more like Albus had hoped that Dippet wouldn’t be up this late. He left the room he had spent his heat in later in the evening in hopes of nobody, especially Dippet, being awake at the time intending to spend the rest of the night collecting his thoughts and sorting out his feelings with a mind clear of the fogginess of heat. He should have known he would not be so lucky. 

“This is the first time in years you’ve come back from a heat not looking like your death is just around the corner so I can assume that means you decided to see him” Dippet responded after giving Albus a quick once over. Albus shuffled his feet in discomfort; he should have known Dippet would want to talk about it as soon as possible. The man was nothing if not persistent and Dippet knew him well enough not to let him sit alone with his thoughts for too long when Gellert was involved. 

“Yes”

Dippet narrowed his eyes at him “you regret it already, don’t you?” 

“More than words could ever express.”

Albus remembered a time when sleeping with Gellert was something he looked forward to but that time was dead and gone along with his sister and his brother’s love for him. Now, the only thing Albus could do is fight his need to see Gellert as long as he possibly could until he, inevitably, had to give in to instinct again.


End file.
